Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626) was sometimes called "the father of empiricism." He was the centeral thinker of the English Renaissance. He became a philosopher, statesman, author, and a scientist. Without a doubt he inspired many other philosophers including John Straut Mill and Thomas Hobbes.
Biography:
Francis Bacon was born in London, England 1561. He went to Trinity College, Cambridge in 1573. He found an extreme dislike for Aristotle's philosophy. His father, a lord keeper, was working for Elizabeth I. When his father died, Bacon was given a small inheritance. Francis, aged 36, was engaged to Elizabeth Hatton,aged 20.But their relationship ended when Elizabeth fell in love with Edward Coke, a very wealthy man. Bacon fell into sorrow for a couple of years after this. He took up the study of law and became a barrister in 1582. His friendship with the 2nd Earl of Essex (the Queen's advisor), was not enough to gain higher office, specifically attorney-general or solicitor-general. Bacon married Alice Burnham in 1606, when he was 45 and she was only 14. Alice drove him to debt in later years. His life some what improved when King James Iriegned . He became a Lord-Chancellor. His secretary was a good friend, Thomas Hobbes.Thomas Hobbes , a follower of Bacon, later became a well known philosopher. Francis was accused of bribery in 1621 by political enemies.He admitted he was guilty. He was a disgrace to England. Bacon devoted the rest of his life to philosophy and writing philosophical books. In 1625 Bacon divorced Mrs. Burnham. He accused her of adultry.
On the night of April 9, 1626 Francis was ridding in a carriage. He thought to himself " Could I preserve meat with ice and snow?" So he got a dead chicken and stuffed it with snow and ice. He caught pnemonia while performing this experiment and died in Highgate, England 1626 at the age of 65.
Major Works:
- Bacon wroteThe Advancement of Learning in 1605.
-The Novum Organum in 1620.
-Instauratio Magna in 1620. (was not finished)
-Also his last book De Augmentis Scientiarum in 1623.
Philosophy:
Bacon mostly emphasized his four idols and his science.
Bacon was the father of the scientific method and an empiricist. He believed in inductive reason. Bacon thought that the human mind is a blank slate when you are born. He thought you take in all your knowledge through your senses.
Bacon made a simile of what scientists should be, "Metaphisicians are like spiders spinning elaborate webs that float in the air, and all from material produced from within their own bodies.Alchemists are like ants, buisily collecting materials together but never producing anything from it. Scientists should be like bees, which not only gather together new materials, but also digest and transform it. He also thought that scientists should "study nature and all it gives us." Bacon thought that science should be one universal thought.
Bacon also believed in four "idols".
The Idols of the Tribe are believes in the mind of the whole human race.
The Idols of the Cave are beliefs in an individuals mind.
The Idols of the Marketplace are errors from what you say or what you think.
The Idols of the Theater are false things you have learned.
Quotes:
"Knowledge is power."
"The purpose of scientific knowledge is to make possible great works for the betterment of human condition."
"Experiments are essential to the testing of theories."
"A prudent question is one-half of wisdom."
"The human mind is prey to certain typical intellectual failures."
"The goal of the science of nature is the discovery of forms , the unobservable organization or structure of the particles of which all things are compound."
Resources:
Jostein Gaarder. Sophie's World.Trans. Paulette Moller. New York: Berkley, 1994.
Francis Bacon: by Caleb
Introduction:
Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1626) was sometimes called "the father of empiricism." He was the centeral thinker of the English Renaissance. He became a philosopher, statesman, author, and a scientist. Without a doubt he inspired many other philosophers including John Straut Mill and Thomas Hobbes.
Biography:
Francis Bacon was born in London, England 1561. He went to Trinity College, Cambridge in 1573. He found an extreme dislike for Aristotle's philosophy.
His father, a lord keeper, was working for Elizabeth I. When his father died, Bacon was given a small inheritance. Francis, aged 36, was engaged to Elizabeth Hatton,aged 20.But their relationship ended when Elizabeth fell in love with Edward Coke, a very wealthy man. Bacon fell into sorrow for a couple of years after this. He took up the study of law and became a barrister in 1582. His friendship with the 2nd Earl of Essex (the Queen's advisor), was not enough to gain higher office, specifically attorney-general or solicitor-general. Bacon married Alice Burnham in 1606, when he was 45 and she was only 14. Alice drove him to debt in later years. His life some what improved when King James Iriegned . He became a Lord-Chancellor. His secretary was a good friend, Thomas Hobbes.Thomas Hobbes , a follower of Bacon, later became a well known philosopher. Francis was accused of bribery in 1621 by political enemies.He admitted he was guilty. He was a disgrace to England. Bacon devoted the rest of his life to philosophy and writing philosophical books. In 1625 Bacon divorced Mrs. Burnham. He accused her of adultry.
On the night of April 9, 1626 Francis was ridding in a carriage. He thought to himself " Could I preserve meat with ice and snow?" So he got a dead chicken and stuffed it with snow and ice. He caught pnemonia while performing this experiment and died in Highgate, England 1626 at the age of 65.
Major Works:
- Bacon wroteThe Advancement of Learning in 1605.
-The Novum Organum in 1620.
-Instauratio Magna in 1620. (was not finished)
-Also his last book De Augmentis Scientiarum in 1623.
Philosophy:
Bacon mostly emphasized his four idols and his science.
Bacon was the father of the scientific method and an empiricist. He believed in inductive reason. Bacon thought that the human mind is a blank slate when you are born. He thought you take in all your knowledge through your senses.
Bacon made a simile of what scientists should be, "Metaphisicians are like spiders spinning elaborate webs that float in the air, and all from material produced from within their own bodies.Alchemists are like ants, buisily collecting materials together but never producing anything from it. Scientists should be like bees, which not only gather together new materials, but also digest and transform it. He also thought that scientists should "study nature and all it gives us." Bacon thought that science should be one universal thought.
Bacon also believed in four "idols".
The Idols of the Tribe are believes in the mind of the whole human race.
Quotes:
"Knowledge is power."
"The purpose of scientific knowledge is to make possible great works for the betterment of human condition."
"Experiments are essential to the testing of theories."
"A prudent question is one-half of wisdom."
"The human mind is prey to certain typical intellectual failures."
"The goal of the science of nature is the discovery of forms , the unobservable organization or structure of the particles of which all things are compound."
Resources:
Jostein Gaarder. Sophie's World. Trans. Paulette Moller. New York: Berkley, 1994.
Collier's Encyclopedia P. F. Collier. [S.l.]. 1982
David Simpson **plato.stanford.edu/entries/**francis**-**bacon**/**
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/**Francis**_**Bacon**
Stephen Law.The Great Philosophers.published by Querus at Plc Bloomburg Square London WCIA 2NS